Five Jewish educators under age 36 have been selected for the Young Pioneers Award given by New York’s Jewish Education Project.

The annual award, launched in 2012, is for young professionals working with children or teens in a Jewish educational setting in New York City, Westchester County or Long Island. The Jewish Education Project said the five awardees were chosen for their commitment to innovation, proven use of technology or other new approaches to inspire students and/or families, and designing or implementing new educational initiatives.

This year’s recipients are Maya Blank, a teacher and special education consultant at Stephen Wise Free Synagogue in Manhattan; Noah Hichenberg, director of the JCC in Manhattan nursery school; Lindsay Ganci, director of youth engagement at the Community Synagogue in Rye, N.Y.; Benjamin Gross, director of educational technology at the Hebrew Academy of the Five Towns and Rockaway; and Rinat Levy-Cohen, Hebrew-language teacher at the Abraham Joshua Heschel School in Manhattan.

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The award recipients will receive a $360 professional development stipend and tickets to a conference hosted by The Jewish Education Project.

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